NFL morning after: Appreciating Adrian Peterson

Posted by Michael David Smith on December 2, 2013, 7:43 AM EDT

AP

Do we all appreciate how good Adrian Peterson is?

Yes, yes, we all know he’s good. But do we take the time to really examine how good he is? Peterson, who willed the Vikings to victory on Sunday with a 35-carry, 211-yard game against the Bears, has now topped 10,000 yards in his career, and that seems like a natural benchmark to reflect on just how extraordinary Peterson’s career has been.

Peterson now leads the league with 1,208 rushing yards, and if he holds on to keep the league lead for the rest of the season, it will be the third time in his career that he led the NFL in rushing. The list of players who led the league in rushing at least three times is pretty much the same as the list of the best running backs in NFL history: Jim Brown, Steve Van Buren, O.J. Simpson, Eric Dickerson, Emmitt Smith, Barry Sanders and Earl Campbell.

And Peterson joined an even more exclusive group on Sunday: Players with more than 10,000 career rushing yards and an average of 5.0 yards a carry. That group consists of Peterson, Jim Brown and Barry Sanders.

Sunday was also the fifth 200-yard game of Peterson’s career; only Simpson has more.

Peterson, of course, is joining this elite company in NFL history with lots of football left to play. The 28-year-old Peterson likely has at least a couple more seasons of playing at an elite level, and even as he begins the inevitable decline that every running back experiences after crossing over to the wrong side of age 30, he can probably be counted on to have some solid if not spectacular seasons into his early- to mid-30s. Five thousand more yards seems readily attainable, and if Peterson does that, he’ll join Smith, Walter Payton and Sanders as the only players in NFL history with 15,000 rushing yards.

One of the impressive things about Peterson is that he doesn’t seem impressed with himself. When asked about reaching the 10,000-yard mark, Peterson was quick to credit the offensive linemen he’s played with.

“A lot of guys over the years have contributed to it,” Peterson said. “Matt Birk, Steve Hutchinson, Bryant McKinnie, the guys from this year, my fullbacks through the years. Just to be in that elite group, it’s truly a blessing. God has really blessed me to be surrounded by some great guys to get to that goal. So I sit here and I’m just humbled.”

That’s a nice sentiment, but the reality is that Peterson hasn’t had great teammates through his career: Unlike Smith, who racked up his yardage while playing most of his career on a team that had a dominant offensive line and Hall of Famers at quarterback and wide receiver, Peterson has often had to be a one-man gang. Peterson has consistently been the best player on his team and the best player on the field, and he’s one of the best running backs ever to play in the NFL.

Peterson was the player who impressed me most on Sunday. Here are my other thoughts:

Robbie Gould picked a bad time to miss. When Gould, the Bears’ kicker, made his second field goal of the day on Sunday, it moved him ahead of Mike Vanderjagt as the most accurate kicker in NFL history. Unfortunately, Gould then missed two field goals: One, a ridiculously long 66-yard attempt, came up short at the end of the fourth quarter. And another, a very makable 47-yard attempt, missed in overtime and gave the Vikings new life. Gould is one of the best kickers in NFL history — unlike Vanderjagt, who played his home games indoors, Gould has to kick at Windy Soldier Field — but that overtime miss may come back to haunt the Bears.

Josh Gordon is the second-best receiver in the NFL. There’s only one Calvin Johnson, but Gordon is doing amazing things while playing in an otherwise dreadful Cleveland passing game. On Sunday, Gordon had 261 receiving yards and became the first player in NFL history to have two consecutive 200-yard receiving games, and he’s now second only to Johnson in receiving yards in the NFL this season. If he hadn’t been suspended for the first two games of the season, Gordon would be challenging Calvin Johnson for the league lead in passing yards. In fact, Gordon is averaging 124.9 yards a game, which is not only better than Megatron’s average yards per game this year, but it’s even better than Megatron’s average yards per game last year, when he set the all-time NFL record for receiving yards in a season.

Did Chip Kelly forget he has Michael Vick? In the second quarter on Sunday, with the Eagles in a goal-to-go situation against the Cardinals, Kelly put wide receiver Brad Smith in to take a shotgun snap — which Smith fumbled. I don’t have a problem with Kelly wanting to try a play with a mobile quarterback in a goal-line offense, but why not put Vick in? Vick is as quick as Smith, and unlike Smith (who signed with the Eagles three weeks ago), Vick actually knows the Eagles’ offense. Nick Foles is the undisputed starter in Philadelphia, but putting Vick in as an occasional change of pace would make sense. Throwing Smith out there made no sense.

Robert Mathis for defensive player of the year. Mathis, the 11-year veteran Colts pass rusher, is having his best season yet. Mathis was already leading the league in sacks heading into Sunday’s game, and Mathis’s strip-sack of Titans quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick on Sunday was a major turning point in the Colts’ win. With 15.5 sacks this season, Mathis is a huge part of the reason the Colts have all but locked up the AFC South.

The Texans lead the way for the first pick in the 2014 NFL draft. Of the four teams that entered Sunday with only two wins, three of them — the Jaguars, Falcons and Vikings — won. Only the Texans lost, which means now the Texans have a commanding lead in the race for the first overall pick in the draft. Case Keenum is actually playing pretty well at quarterback, but probably not well enough to keep the Texans from using the first overall pick on a quarterback who will push him aside for the starting job next year. Louisville’s Teddy Bridgewater and Oregon’s Marcus Mariota are the favorites to be the first player taken, with South Carolina defensive end Jadeveon Clowney the likely top pick if a quarterback doesn’t go first. (It’s fun to think about how a defensive front with Clowney and J.J. Watt playing together would look.)

Cam Newton plays the quarterback position like no one else, ever. After leading the Panthers to another win on Sunday, Newton is on pace for 3,488 yards passing and 596 yards rushing this season. That’s actually par for the course for Newton (he topped both of those totals in both of his previous two seasons in the NFL), but it’s almost unheard of for any other NFL quarterback. Do you know how many times in NFL history a player has had at least 3,488 passing yards and at least 596 rushing yards in a season? Four: Randall Cunningham in 1988, Daunte Culpepper in 2002, Cam Newton in 2011 and Cam Newton in 2012. Newton’s ability to beat teams with his arm and his legs is something we just haven’t seen before. Like Adrian Peterson, Newton is a player all football fans should appreciate.

Do you know how many times in NFL history a player has had at least 3,488 passing yards and at least 596 rushing yards in a season? Four: Randall Cunningham in 1988, Daunte Culpepper in 2002, Cam Newton in 2011 and Cam Newton in 2012.
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He has been an absolutely dominant player at one of the most difficult positions during a time in history when it is more difficult to sustain success at that position than it ever has been. Simply put, he is the best Football player of this decade.

Typical packers guys on a viking thread;
funny neither could be found on thursdays thread with the pack getting stomped- oh thats right because Toyko, Filthy, Carl are all fair weather fans and only come on when there team is decent, no where to be found when getting stomped to death, so Carl what do you think of tolizen now errr flynn or who ever is this weeks savior? Filthy whats your excuse for last thursdays beat down? please quote some more lame stuff, i hope at nite it makes you all warm an fuzzy

AP is definitely a Barry Sanders in the sense of playing many seasons for a losing team, but despite that, Barry is always in the conversation for best of all-time. AP could get there no matter where he plays.

Cunningham did it three years in a row. I know he didn’t meet your very specific numbers but in 1990 he was just a few yards short of 3488 and ran for almost 1000 yards. I’m not saying Cam isn’t good but the same player existed 25 years ago. Maybe Cunningham should have been appreciated more at the time.

The Vikings fans jealousy is absolutely evident in the comments they post. We are sorry your front office cant draft a QB. It’s not our fault your team is bad, redirect the anger to where it belongs, the Vikings. We are sorry you are the 2008 lions if AP pulls a hammy. Once again, not the packers or their fans fault. I know, dear Vikings fans, you were too foolish to know that AP wouldn’t rush for 2,000 yards again, it not your fault that you’re stupid, i blame society for giving up on the garbage heap that Minnesota is. Last year was a fluke on the back of an all time great rusher. I love AP. no one can hate on him.

The Vikings fans jealousy is absolutely evident in the comments they post. We are sorry your front office cant draft a QB. It’s not our fault your team is bad, redirect the anger to where it belongs, the Vikings. We are sorry you are the 2008 lions if AP pulls a hammy. Once again, not the packers or their fans fault. I know, dear Vikings fans, you were too foolish to know that AP wouldn’t rush for 2,000 yards again, it not your fault that you’re stupid, i blame society for giving up on the garbage heap that Minnesota is. Last year was a fluke on the back of an all time great rusher. I love AP. no one can hate on him.

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His first post “he” is complaining about Viking fans posting about Packers even though the first post in this story is a Packer fan posting about Peterson, then in the same story, “he” posts about Viking fans.

The mentality of Packer fans and Sconies is the bottom of the barrel for sure.

Although Peterson and Barry Sanders were totally different runners, very similar circumstances…

Both spent the majority of their careers as the only attraction on their respective teams, both largely played with below average QBs and coaching, both put bad teams on their backs for playoff berths (Sanders in 1997 and AD in 2012), both played in the NFC Central/North, both were perceived as humble, both were pure runners and added little to the passing attack… I’m sure I missed some stuff.

Adrian Petersen is simply the best all around running back Ive ever seen. So much so, that as a Packer fan, I’ve been nervous every time the Packers face the Vikings. Fortunately the Packers are 7-1-1 against him the last 3 years with the loss being followed the next week by a playoff win and the tie occurring recently without Aaron Rodgers.

Vikings fans, you must forgive our Packer fan brethren — they feel the need to trash AP and the Vikes too feel better since their Super Bowl predicted season is gong down in flames after TT played Russian roulette one too many times with their back-up QB and the collection of 4th and 6th round scrubs on defense.

Put the vikings and packers best player on the field and 9 out of 10 times the packers win. Statistics prove that. AP is great, but he’s not a difference maker like Rodgers is. Regardless of whether or not AP is on the field, the vikings are a 3-13 team. With Rodgers on the field, the packers are 13-3. Without him, they’re 3-13.

Rodgers is by far better than AP. He’s more of a difference maker. It’s being proven this year.

I don’t understand where the mindset comes from that the Vikings are “hapless” and “perennial losers.” Since 1968, a few years after their inception, and really the beginning of the franchise, the Vikes have had 3 back-to-back losing seasons. In fact, only one of those occasions occurred in the last 20 years or so. The Vikes feel like they are perennial losers because of the QB situation and the “chokes” in NFC championships. However, their overall record is as good as anyone. With that all said, the current QB situation is garbage and has been for as long as I’ve been alive.

Put the vikings and packers best player on the field and 9 out of 10 times the packers win. Statistics prove that. AP is great, but he’s not a difference maker like Rodgers is. Regardless of whether or not AP is on the field, the vikings are a 3-13 team. With Rodgers on the field, the packers are 13-3. Without him, they’re 3-13.

Rodgers is by far better than AP. He’s more of a difference maker. It’s being proven this year.

duece5 says:

Oh the ignorance of the pack fan!!!!

You can’t compare the QB driven league MVP to a RB MVP.

AP does not handle the ball on EVERY snap.

He can’t throw to himself…..it is an apple and orange argument.

Compare AP to his peers right now, it isn’t even close.

Compare Rodgers to the best of his peers, and I like Manning, Brady, and Brees…..Rodgers is 4th.

The guy gets better and more yards as he approaches 30 carries. Keep feeding him the rock. I’d like to see hi with 50 carries in a game. That’s where the Vikings went wrong all year….they stopped giving him the ball and put the game in ponders hand. What a horrific decision.

Put the vikings and packers best player on the field and 9 out of 10 times the packers win. Statistics prove that. AP is great, but he’s not a difference maker like Rodgers is. Regardless of whether or not AP is on the field, the vikings are a 3-13 team. With Rodgers on the field, the packers are 13-3. Without him, they’re 3-13.

Rodgers is by far better than AP. He’s more of a difference maker. It’s being proven this year.
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Not a fan of either team, but I think you’re confusing the fact that an elite QB is more important than an elite RB to a team’s success. By virtue of his position played, Rodgers is more important to GB’s success than AD is to MN’s. Eleven set of eyes can key on one RB, however the QB can distribute to RBs, WRs, TEs…

I see a lot of people put Barry Sanders at the top of their lists and I just don’t see it. I also hate when people compare Adrian to Barry because they are nothing alike. Barry was taken out in short yardage and didnt get the goal line carries on his team. He wasn’t an every down back. Adrian is the best goal line runner in the league. The most glaring difference, though, is that Barry was a quitter. Adrian will never quit. That’s why I always will have more respect for him. The guy gives 110% at ALL TIMES, and will continue to try and play this game until he dies on the field or no one will play him.

People who say just haven’t watch Cam Newton play. He’s a much better passer than a runner. Pass is always the first option.

The Panthers don’t have a very good run blocking line. They’ve done well lately giving Cam pass protection, but Panthers WRs aren’t getting open very much. Cam has ran more the past few games as a result.

The Packers and their fans are deep inside the heads of the Viking trolls. Deep. It has never been more evident. Look at their posts. They simply cannot handle the fact their team is STILL more inept than the worst performing Packer team in 25 years. Loving it.

I am a Viking Fan and have been since 1965 and i do know what a special player he is {A.P.} but i will say that Barry Sanders was once in a life time and i just have to say he was the best running back of all-time then i think Jim brown and Adrian Peterson and then Earl and Walter and Emmit but Barry was like none that has ever been on a football field bar none . As far as who wins super bowls well on i know of was that guy named Walter and another was Redskin who rush A for then record for the Super bowl i am not sure it still is but he did the real dammage. and to be honest it was the packer running game in the 60’s that won there’s ,yes Bart Star was good, but the running game was off the charts and then there are guys that never did go to the super bowl like O.J. AND Gayle and those two are in the top of all time as well as Eric Dickerson, nah that’s my two cents worth.Thank you for reading GO VIKINGS

The Packers and their fans are deep inside the heads of the Viking trolls. Deep. It has never been more evident. Look at their posts. They simply cannot handle the fact their team is STILL more inept than the worst performing Packer team in 25 years. Loving it.

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Yeah — it would suck if my team could only tie that inept team at home at the precious Lambleau field with its stunning outhouses and cheap beer.

First off, Cam Newton is very special. SB’s won by running qb’s; let’s see, Bradshaw -4, Staubach -2, Montana – 3, Young -1, Farve – 1,Brady -3, Rothlisburger -2, Rogers 1. That is at least 17. Every single one of them ran when they needed to. Unfortunately, most posters really don’t know the history of the NFL and so one might say that Barry or Adrian are pure runners, again not true, they are limited also by what plays and schemes their coaches use. I would love to see AP thrown the ball on swing passes, in the flat or more dump offs, his sorry coaches don’t use him this way. BTW, the Vikings have won more games, more division titles and been to the playoffs more than 75% of the NFL teams since their beginning, so again, maybe some posters should do some research before they post their ignorant comments, a top 25% is not a hapless franchise. Our SB Victory will come, just not yet and not with Frazier and Ponder. For some reason the Packer fans that need to hate on and be noticed on Viking posts, I have this tidbit for you. Aaron is a great qb we all agree on that but for all his greatness, he runs when needed and he has only won one SB. His coaches and gm do not value protecting him, having a solid back up qb while knowing that he is one of the most sacked qb’s and not taking defense seriously. Go Vikings!

Oh I forgot Elway, who ran more than most of those others. He won 2, so the total is at least 19.
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Elway was not a running QB. He moved in the pocket to buy time in order to pass. A running QB is a player who runs the ball at the first sign of pressure, not the occasional run for yardage.

Running QBs don’t go through their progressions. Even Steve Young is a stretch. He didn’t win a SB until he stopped running so much and passed the ball instead. Same with Elway.

BTW, each Elway and Young have ongoing highlights of runs that helped them win games. Elway in the SB against Atlanta where he got hit and spun around and Young against Minnesota in the playoffs for approximately 40 yards.

Obviously there isn’t a written definition. It’s more of a conventional wisdom sort of thing. I did a web search and found a couple of descriptions by sports writers which I think accurately describe a running QB.

Does he get more than 500 yards rushing in a season?
Does he get more than 40 yards in a game?
Are there specific plays designed for him to run? Are those plays executed more than 5 times a game?
Scrambling to buy time or kneeling to end a half or a game do not count.
Does he run when no there is no pocket pressure? (somewhat subjective)

In Steve Young’s SB year he ran for less than 300 yards. In the three previous years when labeled as a choker he ran for over 400 yards and once for over 500 yards.

Elway never rushed for over 300 yards in any year, and in his last year (SB win) he only had 94 yards rushing the whole year.

BTW(2) Young had more rushing attempts the year he won the SB than the next 3 years after. And for the Packer fan that thinks this is their worst year in the last 25, not true at all. There are 6 years in the last 25 as bad as this one and 12 more since the merger. Again, your perception is not necessarily reality. Go Vikings!

That makes some sense, but I think that any time a qb runs more than once a quarter to pick up yardage he is a running qb. Again, I like your attempt at defining it but I think that too often people stick a label on someone and don’t know the facts. Was Young a choker in TB or SF? Was he a choker in SF because he had much more of team to work with and he ran better than Montana, again perception. My perception is that he was only labeled a choker because he had not won the SB and the SF fans didn’t care how much he ran but about that SB win. I also think that many times a qb runs by plan when there is pocket pressure and that you would agree with that as well. So, too often a label is applied and it is not accurate.

A lot of foolish comments saying he will never equate to anything without a SB championship. If that’s so true then why is he constantly compared to BARRY SANDERS? If he didn’t play on such a mediocre passing offense all these years he wouldn’t be anywhere near 10,000 yards right now. The Vikings and AP were a match made in heaven…

gmjerry says:
Dec 2, 2013 10:22 AM
Cunningham did it three years in a row. I know he didn’t meet your very specific numbers but in 1990 he was just a few yards short of 3488 and ran for almost 1000 yards. I’m not saying Cam isn’t good but the same player existed 25 years ago. Maybe Cunningham should have been appreciated more at the time.
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RC probably was not appreciated like he should have been. But when you consider the numbers Cam is putting up these first 3 years, with only 1 elite WR and an oft-injured, thin offensive line, that makes his performances look even better. And this year he’s finally winning games, thanks to a great defense and incredible 3rd- and 4th-down efficiency. I’ve tried to stay away from the “best of all time” talk and comparison until we win some playoff games. But there’s no doubt Cam is a very special player.